Tom Hardy Wanted as Jafar in Disney's Aladdin Live-Action Remake?

1 year ago

Sources are saying that Tom Hardy is in talks to portray Jafar in Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin remake. It was already a big surprise when Disney announced Richie’s involvement in this live-action update of the beloved animated movie, and there are apparently a lot more surprises in store. Currently Will Smith is also rumored to be in the remake, possibly playing the https://movieweb.com/aladdin-disney-remake-2018-kevin-hart-genie-character/Genie. Ritchie was recently asked about the possibility of Smith’s involvement, but the filmmaker just smiled and said that he can’t reveal much before saying, “I love Will Smith very much. It would make me very happy to be making it with him.”

Which leads us to today’s new rumor. The UK paper TheSun is reporting that Richie has been in talks with Hardy to play the villain Jafar in the upcoming movie. According to a source close to The Sun (no pun intended), Ritchie is a big fan of Hardy’s work. Read what the anonymous source had to say below.

“Guy is a huge fan of Tom’s work and securing him would be a major coup. There have been conversations and, although nothing is set in stone and things are subject to change, he’s certainly one of Guy’s favored choices. It just depends on schedules whether he’ll be able to sign up.”

Now it should be noted that TheSun is probably not the most reliable source, so we’ll take this news with a decent grain of salt. Hardy and Ritchie do have a history together. Tom Hardy played Handsome Bob in Ritchie’s 2008 movie RocknRolla, which was not a box office smash and has had mixed reviews to say the least. One thing that most critics could agree upon was Hardy’s small role in the movie was outstanding. The role solidified Hardy’s in-demand status that he commands today, but will he make a good Jafar in a Guy Ritchie remake of Aladdin? Nonetheless, the thought of seeing Hardy as a villain again is exciting on its own.

The anonymous source also revealed that British girl group Little Mix’s Jade Thirwall is in talks to play the role of Princess Jasmine. Apparently talks have been going on far quite a while with Thirwall. The source says that.

“Jasmine is Jade’s perfect role, so she’s delighted to have got this far in the process.”

Again, take this information with a grain of salt. There really is nothing else to go off of except that Thirwall is a huge Disney fan that frequents the amusement park. The same can be said about a lot of people of all ages. But if it does, the rest of the band reportedly has their “fingers crossed” for Thirwall.

Ritchie’s Aladdin musical remake appears to be a pretty big gamble on Disney’s part, but with the success of the Jungle Book and Beauty and the Beast live-action remakes it seems that Disney can do no wrong. Aladdin is expected to begin production soon with a release date to follow soon. Let’s just hope it’s better than Ritchie’s latest movie King Arthur.